Taking Down The Family
by lordkenyon
Summary: After Cressida's life is torn apart, she decides to turn against her family and the crime syndicate they run with the help of three aurors: James Potter (who she has a complicated past with naturally), Scorpius Malfoy (a second cousin who has no love for the Hadrian Crime Syndicate), and Albus Potter (who's honestly just there because he doesn't want to miss out on all the fun).
1. Taking Down the Family

"So let me get this straight," said the man in front of me. "You are going to testify against the Hadrian Crime Syndicate."

"Yes," I said, gritting my teeth and trying to remain patient. "Specifically Atticus Hadrian."

Who happened to be my father and the head of the syndicate. We're a very tight family as you can see.

"And who are you?" he asked.

I faltered briefly. "I can't tell you that."

The receptionist looked exasperated. "I don't think you understand how the legal system works. You can't testify and remain anonymous. The courts will throw out any evidence you give us," he said, before pausing to collect his thoughts. "The Department of Magical Law Enforcement have a policy of not taking random people off the street willing to testify. You could be some rejected girl or hooker."

"Do I look like a hooker to you?" I asked haughtily.

The receptionist looked me up and down. I was wearing very sensible clothes, specifically a jacket buttoned all the way up and jeans. Maybe the jeans were a little too tight, but not hooker tight. My dark brown hair was put up in a messy bun. I hadn't enough time to fix it before I'd left my flat.

"You don't," he admitted. "But -"

I cut him off. "If I was a male offering to testify, you'd have already whisked me away back to meet with a team from the Wizengamot. I resent your implications and rudeness." I got up to leave. "I can see my testimony is not wanted. I will see myself out."

"Sit back down," the receptionist said irritably. "This is common procedure. We have to confirm your identity. When someone doesn't tell us who they are, we assume that they have no evidence to offer. Especially against the Hadrian Crime Syndicate. I will ask this one last time. Who are you?"

"I can't tell _you_ ," I said, my eyes flashing.

"I think we're…" he trailed off, before finally gathering my meaning.

He hesitated. "Are you a high ranking member of the Hadrian Crime Syndicate?"

"Yes."

"If I find the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, will you talk to her?" he asked.

"Yes."

It was about time. I wasn't being that subtle.

The receptionist jumped up and ran back behind his desk into the labyrinth of cubicles and hallways. I waited idly, examining my nails. My left pinky's nail polish was chipping. I would have to fix that when I got back.

He finally came back, following a woman with frizzy brown hair. I immediately recognized her as Hermione Granger, head of the department and former Minister for Magic. She sat down at the receptionist's desk and glanced at him. "You are dismissed, Gordon."

Granger turned her full attention on me. "You know who I am."

It wasn't a question, but a statement. She continued. "So you know how busy I am and if I find out that this is just a waste of my time, so help me God, I will arrest you for obstruction of justice and -"

"I'm Cressida Hadrian," I blurted out. There was something about Granger that made me trust her.

She raised an eyebrow and pulled out her wand. I panicked for a second, before realizing that she was casting a summoning charm. A file came flying out of the maze of cubicles behind her and landed open in front of her, without a single page coming free.

That was very impressive. I could tell that she was a very powerful witch. In the meantime, Granger was examining the file closely. She looked up at me and then back down.

"We're going to hold you for an hour," Granger said finally, "to make sure you're not using Polyjuice. Then we'll talk."

She stood and put her hand on my arm. "Follow me."

Granger guided me through the rows and rows of cubicles, occasionally waving her wand and shooting silvery wisps. Finally, she stopped and gestured for me to enter a small conference room. "I'll stay with you until one of the Aurors gets here."

"You're assigning the Aurors to this case?" I asked incredulously. My family was bad but not Dark Arts bad.

"We don't know a lot about your family," admitted Granger. "Rather overkill than underkill."

I nodded. To be honest, I couldn't be sure that no one in my family had dabbled in the Dark Arts. If anyone did it would be my mother's brother, Caliban. That man was as evil as he was ugly. He's lucky he has money or else Aunt Deirdre would never have looked at him twice. But I digress.

Granger nodded at one of the chairs facing away from the door and I sat down, making myself comfortable. She poured a glass of water from a jug she had conjured after closing the door and handed it to me. "Thirsty?"

I took it gratefully, nodding my head in gratitude. I guzzled it back which was a complete disregard for manners. Mother would kill me.

There was a knock at the door and Granger turned to open it. I ignored the temptation to turn around and look to see who it was. I did, however, listen to the muted conversation behind me.

"Not her," a man's voice said behind me. Hmmm, his voice sounded familiar to me. Must've been someone from my Hogwarts days.

"Don't be ridiculous," Granger snapped. "Your father specifically assigned you to this so unless you want to go tell him that you're shirking your responsibilities…"

The man sighed. "Aunt Hermione…"

So he was a nephew of Granger. Not that that helped at all. There's so many Weasleys, it's hard to keep track of them. But she had said that his father assigned him to me which means his father is a high ranking member of the Aurors. So his father is either Ron Weasley of Harry Potter. Can't be Ron Weasley because no family is that messed up. So he's Potter's son which means... Oh God… You've got to be shitting me.

"Ms. Hadrian?" said Granger. "I believe you know my nephew James Potter? He'll be the Auror assigned to you. You'll be working very closely together."

I put on a fake smile and stood up to face them. Was it too late to change my mind about this whole thing? Shit. Shit. Shit.

"Hello Potter."


	2. Christmas at Hogwarts

Twas the night before Christmas Break our seventh year when I talked to James Potter for the first time. Obviously I knew who he was, but our paths had never really crossed. Inter-house unity had increased for a bit after the war, but things had really gone down the shitter after the scandal that had rocked Hogwarts back in 2017 when I was only a third year. Ravenclaws and Slytherins had always generally gotten along pretty well before that, but after the scandal, things were bad for a while.

By seventh year, relations had thawed some between our two houses, but the politics of Hogwarts had completely changed. Seemingly out of nowhere, Slytherins and Gryffindors had formed an alliance. I think it probably had to do with Potter's young brother being sorted into Slytherin where he started fucking a Malfoy. Or maybe the Malfoy was fucking the Potter. I don't want to make judgements. But, those kind of things just change the landscape, you know? The whole love affair coupled with the scandal really saw Ravenclaw's named dragged through the mud.

Not that I cared too much. Sure, I was a Ravenclaw, but I wasn't the poster child for the house. I wasn't one of those nuts at every Quidditch match screaming their heads off or bragging about the exploits of Rowena Ravenclaw. I kept my head down and dealt with shit. That's how I had been raised after all. Hadrians stay out of trouble and let other people fuck up. It had kept the family out of Azkaban for so many generations, so I figured it should probably work for me too.

The Friday before Christmas Break though I was drunk enough to be be jumping on tables, singing "The Heart Will Go On" and quoting Luna Lovegood and Nobby Leach, two of the most famous Ravenclaws. I usually don't like getting drunk, it puts your guard down and you can let slip almost anything.

Which is why starting a conversation with James Potter was the worst idea you could imagine. See, when your family runs one of the biggest crime syndicates in Europe it is generally a good idea to not talk to a guy whose father is the Head of the Auror Office, whose mum is a well respected reporter, and whose aunt is the bleeding Minister for Magic. To be fair though, it wasn't exactly a secret what my family did – it was just that no one had any proof. Remember, keep your head down and let other people fuck up.

But, it probably wasn't the best of ideas to start talking to Potter when he came up to me at the bar.

"So, Hadrian, come here often?" a voice behind me asked.

I was leaning against the counter with my arm propping up my face. I was, I admit, sticking my boobs out in an attempt to look sexy. There was a hot redhead over standing a couple of meters away and I was trying to make eye contact. At the sound of the male voice though, I lifted my body up and turned to face my new suitor.

"Does that ever work?" I asked snidely before I noticed who was asking me the question.

I realized that Potter also noticed who I was when we made eye contact and he muttered "fuck" under his breath.

We stood there in awkward silence for a few seconds, not quite sure what the protocol was in the situation. The rest of the party continued around us, thumping bass music and drunk white girls getting much too excited about muggle songs.

After a few beats, I shrugged and decided to let the alcohol guide me. I rarely indulged my id, and I felt that now was as good of a time as any.

"Only on Weird Friday," I said, smirking.

Potter relaxed slightly. "As good of a time as any, I guess."

Still smirking, I took a swig of my butterbeer as he made some motion to the poor Hufflepuff who was tending the bar. Puffs always ended up tending up the bar and remaining sober throughout the night because they were such good moms.

"Was that you trying to get the attention of that Puff?"

"Clearly," he replied, not quite sure where the conversation was going.

"You have to be more aggressive than that," I said decidedly. "It's a party and it's Weird Friday. There's only one way to get the attention of whoever is serving drinks."

I turned back to the bar, keeping an eye on Potter, and touched the Puff slightly who's walking by behind the counter. He turned to me, about to snap, but then he noticed my boobs that are are barely contained in my tight shirt.

He stuttered for a second as I smiled at him. I gave him that second and I said "Can I have another one?" as I shook my empty mug of butterbeer.

He nodded hurriedly and rushed away. I turned triumphantly to Potter who's scowling at me.

"You used an enlarging charm."

I shrugged. "I want my butterbeer."

He laughed briefly before taking a drink of his cocktail. He tipped it back, finishing off the last bits, but I felt his eyes on me.

The Puff returned with my butterbeer and slid it to me. I winked at him and turned away from the bar, taking in the sight of the party. I sensed rather than saw Potter do the same.

"So what are you doing over Break?" he asked.

I raised my eyebrow a bit. We're doing small talk now?

He saw that I looked slightly taken aback, but didn't seem to care. So, he answered his own question. "It's a lot of family time for us. Spend Christmas morning with my parents and siblings before going to my grandparents' house for dinner."

For some reason, I replied, "Pretty much the same. It's the only time really my parents' families get together."

He looked interested. Shit. I forgot that my mum's side of of the family was involved with the family business too.

"I mean, not that it's anything special. Just your normal dinner. A roast prepared by the house-elves. Pudding. Boring stories by all the oldies. It's good craic. Can't go wrong "

Fuck. I was babbling. I paused from my rant and looked accusingly down at my drink.

To my surprise though, Potter interrupted me. "I don't care."

"I beg your pardon?"

"I'm sick of it."

This conversation kept getting more and more unexpected.

"I'm sick of being a Potter. I don't care what your family does."

That really shut me up.

He kept going. "I don't care that Aunt Hermione is Minister for Magic. I just want to be a normal teenager who talks to girls at bars and who doesn't have to worry if the girl he's trying to hook up with is going to kidnap him to use as ransom."

I laughed at that and he glared at me. I sobered up, realizing he wasn't kidding. That was actually good to know that I had the reputation. I pushed the thought away and filed it away for later.

I opened my mouth to speak, but then thought better of it. This seemed like something that he should deal with by himself. It really was not my wheelhouse. I let him keep speaking.

He continued ranting. I got bored of listening to him eventually and zoned out for a few moments. Still making it seem like I was paying attention to him, I looked around the party. It was about that time in the night when everyone was either breaking up into couples or leaving. If I didn't hurry up and end this conversation soon, we'd end up surrounded by drunk and horny teenagers and I did not want that.

But, then I saw Addison across the room, who was dancing with some girl and engaged in an obnoxious snogging session. Furious, I took Potter's arm aggressively and put my other hand behind his neck. Before I knew what I was doing, I pulled his head down to mine and started making out with him obnoxiously.

He didn't know what to do for a moment and his lips didn't open up to mine. I pulled away and looked at him, my hand still on his shoulder. I smiled at him.

Potter surveyed me, his eyes unreadable. Shit, had I read him wrong? Drunk as I was, I knew better than to push my luck.

Before I could say anything, he put his arm around my side and drew me closer, pushing our lips together. Oh, okay.

I would regret it tomorrow, but if it had the chance of making Addison jealous, it was worth it.


	3. The Tale of Delilah Makenna

"You know, Hadrian, you don't seem all that upset about this business. Your girlfriend being murdered and your family being responsible."

I gave him a cold look. "Emotions aren't going to avenge her and send my family to Azkaban, Potter."

Potter had the human decency to look somewhat abashed, but at this point I didn't care. I was tired and wanted to leave the Ministry now.

Granger glared at her asshole of a nephew before turning back to me. "It's late and we have everything we need from you."

"Where should I go?"

Shaking her head, Granger said, "You're not going home tonight. We'll take you to one of our safe houses."

"A Ministry safe house?" I said doubtfully.

She laughed slightly. "No, one of _our's_. This is beyond the Ministry now."

The way she said _our's_ made me feel safer. She must have meant one of the safe houses they had used back when the Order of the Phoenix had been around. My family might have infiltrated every level of the Ministry, but they had never made it into the Order of the Phoenix. Dumbledore's Army too, for that matter.

Potter stood up. "Where should I take her?"

That was rather presumptuous, if you ask me. Clearly, Granger agreed because one look from her made him sit back down. She had been one hell of a Minister and I did not know why she had stepped down.

Granger stood up from her own chair and opened the door to the room. She gestured to the people who were waiting outside and brought them into the room. The group consisted of Albus, Scorpius, and the two blokes from before. They were joined by someone new. He was on the taller side and was a dead ringer for both James and Albus.

I was very pleased with myself. I had caused Harry Potter to come into the Ministry for an emergency meeting late at night.

James got to his feet again when he saw his father. "Dad – what are you doing here?"

Harry smiled tightly at his eldest child as he closed the door behind him, before sealing it with a charm. "Your brother sent me a Patronus."

Granger glanced at her less asshole of a nephew. "I'm glad you did."

Albus shrugged, trying to brush off the praise, but I could tell he was pleased.

Before anyone could do anything else, both Granger and Potter had raised their wands and shot some kind of curse at the two unnamed blokes. They both collapsed where they were standing.

The three younger men started in surprise. "Dad!"

I had been startled too, but I knew how to hide it. I looked at the two older adults shrewdly. "You don't trust them, do you?"

Granger shook her head as she waved her wand at the two men. Their bodies were lifted into the air and dropped unceremoniously into chairs.

"This needs to stay in this room," said Granger. "There's very few people we can trust at the Ministry right now."

I nodded in agreeance. "What about Gordon? The incompetent receptionist."

Granger snorted. "He's harmless. Besides, he's sworn to secrecy. Any support staff in the MLE swear unbreakable vows. Higher ranking wizards –" She motioned to the two unconscious men "– are not because they may need to use their discretion at some point."

"So what do we do now?" asked Albus eagerly.

"We take Cressida to a safe house," answered Granger, "until we decide what to do next."

I had figured as much. They needed to decide how to use me to destroy the Hadrians. I just had one question. "How long will that be?"

Harry and Granger exchanged glances, before the latter spoke up. "A couple of days probably."

I nodded. "Take me to the safe house then. I'm exhausted."

Turning to Albus and Scorpius, Granger said, "Take her to Shell Cottage. Don't leave the house under any circumstance. James will come by tomorrow with some supplies."

She turned to me. "I'm sorry this has all happened to you, Cressida."

"Me too," I said simply.

She nodded once and extended her arm to my shoulder and gave it a little squeeze. It was quick and a very small token of friendliness, but I appreciated it nonetheless.

Scorpius and Albus came up to me and each took one of my arms. The two of them began to spin and there was a familiar, uncomfortable feeling of being forced through a rubber tube.

We arrived in front of a simple looking cottage some 10 meters from a severe looking drop off. From the moon and starlight, I could see the ocean reaching into the distance.

Albus quickly moved toward the cottage and tapped his wand on the door. It opened for him and he walked through. Scorpius and I quickly followed him in.

"What is this place?" I questioned as I entered the foyer and looked around.

"The cottage belongs to my Uncle Bill and Aunt Fleur. They moved out when she was pregnant with their third kid, but we keep it as a safe house. You know, make sure all the wards are still in place from the War and can be used in an emergency," said Albus. "The Fidelius charm was taken off years ago though."

I didn't have to ask who "we" was. I knew my history and the kind of lives the Potters and Weasleys had. As I saw Scorpius investigate the kitchen, I added him to my mental list too. The Malfoys hadn't had an easy time either. Which reminded me…

I followed Scorpius into the kitchen where he had opened the fridge and was frowning at its emptiness. He scowled at me as I entered. "James had better come early tomorrow morning. I'm starving."

His scowl turned into a frown as he saw my expression. I'm not sure what it was exactly, but probably some mix of exhaustion, confusion, and pain. He closed the fridge and faced me. "Let's go into the conservatory. It's beautiful."

He was right. I couldn't help but gasp when we sat down down on a plushy couch that overlooked the sea. I had been able to make out the ocean and cliffside from the front of the cottage, but the view from the conservatory was breathtaking.

"Have you been here before?" I asked. He had been so right about the conservatory; he must've had some previous knowledge.

Interestingly enough, Scorpius blushed in response. Even though I had a million questions, I couldn't help but snicker. I drawled, "Been here with a certain Mr. Potter?"

"Scorp, if you're fucking my dad again, we're going to have problems," said Albus as he walked into the conservatory, trying to hold three hot mugs of what smelled like hot chocolate.

I beamed up at him as he handed me a mug while Scorpius rolled his eyes dramatically. "That joke wasn't even funny the first time. I do not find your dad attractive."

"That's not what you said to Rosie first year," responded Al with a smug look. He sat down in an armchair that faced the couch Scorpius and I were sharing.

"That wasn't my fault!" argued Scorpius. "I was a sexually confused 11 year old – you can't fault me for that."

Albus gave him a loving look that almost made me gag. "You were such a cute 11 year old."

Scorpius just rolled his eyes again, but there was a hint of a smile on his face too. "Ignoring my strange boyfriend for a moment –"

"I resent that."

" – I think you have a few questions for me," he finished.

I nodded. "I don't even know where to begin."

"I'll begin then for you," said Scorpius.

Relieved, I agreed. "Please."

"I joined the aurors straight out of Hogwarts. This one –" a vague handwave in the direction of Albus "– and I were in the same cohort," he said. "I had the blessing of father too. Not that I needed it, but it was nice to know I had it."

"Draco let you join the aurors?" I asked incredulously. I had only met them a handful of times and only at social occasions or family events, but what I knew of the Malfoys did not jive with them approving of their son joining the aurors.

"Do you remember that business my fourth year?" asked Scorpius.

"Vaguely," I answered slowly, trying to recall what had befallen my cousin that year. "I remember there was something about a time turner and that you and Albus got into a spot of trouble."

Albus laughed darkly at that. "That's putting it lightly."

With a glance at Albus, Scorpius began to explain, "We accidentally created a few alternate realities. Timelines where Voldemort won the war. Timelines where Albus didn't exist."

"That's a lot for two 14 year olds to handle," I said quietly because I wasn't quite sure what else to say. I took a long sip of my hot chocolate.

"We handled it eventually," said Scorpius evenly. "It took much longer to mentally recover."

He and Albus made eye contact again and so much was transmitted through that look that I had to turn my eyes away from the two of them. They had been through a lot together.

Scorpius gave himself a little shake. "Anyways, after that happened and after mum died, father did a lot of soul searching. I don't think he'll be joining the Order of the Phoenix anytime soon, but he's always welcome at the Potters for Christmas dinner."

I raised an eyebrow. "That's actually saying a lot."

"It does," said Albus softly.

Scorpius continued his story. "After mum died, we pretty much stopped talking to the Greengrass side of the family."

"Until recently," added Albus.

Nodding, Scorpius went on, "The last couple of years, I've been kind of undercover trying to infiltrate my side of the Greengrasses to get closer to the syndicate."

"How's that been working out?" I asked.

"Not very well," admitted Scorpius. "We're not sure which Greengrasses are involved with the syndicate, so it's been a lot of dead ends. Plus, regardless of my Greengrass background, dating a Potter doesn't make it easy to trust you."

"It must be fun to spend so much time with the Greengrasses," I deadpanned.

"I have to take a shower after every time I meet with one of them."

It was my turn to laugh darkly. "If your Greengrasses are anything like Grandma Scarlett, I don't blame you."

Albus looked horrified and actually spit out some of his hot chocolate. I gave him a very weird look. "What's wrong?"

"It's just that, that, that Scorpius's Grandma Greengrass is named Jade," he spluttered.

"Your point?" I asked, very confused. Scorpius looked like he had an inkling of what Albus's problem was and was either about to laugh or roll his eyes. I really had no idea.

"It's so tacky!" Albus was finally able to say. "They're both named after colors!"

I couldn't help it. I laughed. Very loudly. It was just so ridiculous and innocent that it made me forget why the three of us were together.

It was the first time I felt happy (let's be honest though – the first time I felt nearly happy) in what seemed like an eternity and I let the emotion wash over me and I basked in it.

I would get through this and I would survive whatever my family threw at me.

A/N: Hiya all! Thanks for making it this far. I'm having a blast writing this story. It's the first fanfiction I've written in a long time and I'm having a blast. I certainly hope you're having a blast too.

At this point, I should make a note regarding the canonicity of _Taking Down The Family_. As far as I'm aware, this story is compliant with _The Cursed Child_. I believe the major details are there (Scorpius and Albus's background, Astoria's death/Draco's change of heart, Hermione being a former Minister for Magic - though for my purposes, I imagine that she stepped aside after her first term, spouting something about the continuity of government or the peaceful transition of power to make a statement about Ministry corruption). Let me know if you spot anything major that I should be aware of!


	4. The Safe House

"You know, Hadrian, you don't seem all that upset about this business. Your girlfriend being murdered and your family being responsible."

I gave him a cold look. "Emotions aren't going to avenge her and send my family to Azkaban, Potter."

Potter had the human decency to look somewhat abashed, but at this point I didn't care. I was tired and wanted to leave the Ministry now.

Granger glared at her asshole of a nephew before turning back to me. "It's late and we have everything we need from you."

"Where should I go?"

Shaking her head, Granger said, "You're not going home tonight. We'll take you to one of our safe houses."

"A Ministry safe house?" I said doubtfully.

She laughed slightly. "No, one of _our's_. This is beyond the Ministry now."

The way she said _our's_ made me feel safer. She must have meant one of the safe houses they had used back when the Order of the Phoenix had been around. My family might have infiltrated every level of the Ministry, but they had never made it into the Order of the Phoenix. Dumbledore's Army too, for that matter.

Potter stood up. "Where should I take her?"

That was rather presumptuous, if you ask me. Clearly, Granger agreed because one look from her made him sit back down. She had been one hell of a Minister and I did not know why she had stepped down.

Granger stood up from her own chair and opened the door to the room. She gestured to the people who were waiting outside and brought them into the room. The group consisted of Albus, Scorpius, and the two blokes from before. They were joined by someone new. He was on the taller side and was a dead ringer for both James and Albus.

I was very pleased with myself. I had caused Harry Potter to come into the Ministry for an emergency meeting late at night.

James got to his feet again when he saw his father. "Dad – what are you doing here?"

Harry smiled tightly at his eldest child as he closed the door behind him, before sealing it with a charm. "Your brother sent me a Patronus."

Granger glanced at her less asshole of a nephew. "I'm glad you did."

Albus shrugged, trying to brush off the praise, but I could tell he was pleased.

Before anyone could do anything else, both Granger and Potter had raised their wands and shot some kind of curse at the two unnamed blokes. They both collapsed where they were standing.

The three younger men started in surprise. "Dad!"

I had been startled too, but I knew how to hide it. I looked at the two older adults shrewdly. "You don't trust them, do you?"

Granger shook her head as she waved her wand at the two men. Their bodies were lifted into the air and dropped unceremoniously into chairs.

"This needs to stay in this room," said Granger. "There's very few people we can trust at the Ministry right now."

I nodded in agreeance. "What about Gordon? The incompetent receptionist."

Granger snorted. "He's harmless. Besides, he's sworn to secrecy. Any support staff in the MLE swear unbreakable vows. Higher ranking wizards –" She motioned to the two unconscious men "– are not because they may need to use their discretion at some point."

"So what do we do now?" asked Albus eagerly.

"We take Cressida to a safe house," answered Granger, "until we decide what to do next."

I had figured as much. They needed to decide how to use me to destroy the Hadrians. I just had one question. "How long will that be?"

Harry and Granger exchanged glances, before the latter spoke up. "A couple of days probably."

I nodded. "Take me to the safe house then. I'm exhausted."

Turning to Albus and Scorpius, Granger said, "Take her to Shell Cottage. Don't leave the house under any circumstance. James will come by tomorrow with some supplies."

She turned to me. "I'm sorry this has all happened to you, Cressida."

"Me too," I said simply.

She nodded once and extended her arm to my shoulder and gave it a little squeeze. It was quick and a very small token of friendliness, but I appreciated it nonetheless.

Scorpius and Albus came up to me and each took one of my arms. The two of them began to spin and there was a familiar, uncomfortable feeling of being forced through a rubber tube.

We arrived in front of a simple looking cottage some 10 meters from a severe looking drop off. From the moon and starlight, I could see the ocean reaching into the distance.

Albus quickly moved toward the cottage and tapped his wand on the door. It opened for him and he walked through. Scorpius and I quickly followed him in.

"What is this place?" I questioned as I entered the foyer and looked around.

"The cottage belongs to my Uncle Bill and Aunt Fleur. They moved out when she was pregnant with their third kid, but we keep it as a safe house. You know, make sure all the wards are still in place from the War and can be used in an emergency," said Albus. "The Fidelius charm was taken off years ago though."

I didn't have to ask who "we" was. I knew my history and the kind of lives the Potters and Weasleys had. As I saw Scorpius investigate the kitchen, I added him to my mental list too. The Malfoys hadn't had an easy time either. Which reminded me…

I followed Scorpius into the kitchen where he had opened the fridge and was frowning at its emptiness. He scowled at me as I entered. "James had better come early tomorrow morning. I'm starving."

His scowl turned into a frown as he saw my expression. I'm not sure what it was exactly, but probably some mix of exhaustion, confusion, and pain. He closed the fridge and faced me. "Let's go into the conservatory. It's beautiful."

He was right. I couldn't help but gasp when we sat down down on a plushy couch that overlooked the sea. I had been able to make out the ocean and cliffside from the front of the cottage, but the view from the conservatory was breathtaking.

"Have you been here before?" I asked. He had been so right about the conservatory; he must've had some previous knowledge.

Interestingly enough, Scorpius blushed in response. Even though I had a million questions, I couldn't help but snicker. I drawled, "Been here with a certain Mr. Potter?"

"Scorp, if you're fucking my dad again, we're going to have problems," said Albus as he walked into the conservatory, trying to hold three hot mugs of what smelled like hot chocolate.

I beamed up at him as he handed me a mug while Scorpius rolled his eyes dramatically. "That joke wasn't even funny the first time. I do not find your dad attractive."

"That's not what you said to Rosie first year," responded Al with a smug look. He sat down in an armchair that faced the couch Scorpius and I were sharing.

"That wasn't my fault!" argued Scorpius. "I was a sexually confused 11 year old – you can't fault me for that."

Albus gave him a loving look that almost made me gag. "You were such a cute 11 year old."

Scorpius just rolled his eyes again, but there was a hint of a smile on his face too. "Ignoring my strange boyfriend for a moment –"

"I resent that."

" – I think you have a few questions for me," he finished.

I nodded. "I don't even know where to begin."

"I'll begin then for you," said Scorpius.

Relieved, I agreed. "Please."

"I joined the aurors straight out of Hogwarts. This one –" a vague handwave in the direction of Albus "– and I were in the same cohort," he said. "I had the blessing of father too. Not that I needed it, but it was nice to know I had it."

"Draco let you join the aurors?" I asked incredulously. I had only met them a handful of times and only at social occasions or family events, but what I knew of the Malfoys did not jive with them approving of their son joining the aurors.

"Do you remember that business my fourth year?" asked Scorpius.

"Vaguely," I answered slowly, trying to recall what had befallen my cousin that year. "I remember there was something about a time turner and that you and Albus got into a spot of trouble."

Albus laughed darkly at that. "That's putting it lightly."

With a glance at Albus, Scorpius began to explain, "We accidentally created a few alternate realities. Timelines where Voldemort won the war. Timelines where Albus didn't exist."

"That's a lot for two 14 year olds to handle," I said quietly because I wasn't quite sure what else to say. I took a long sip of my hot chocolate.

"We handled it eventually," said Scorpius evenly. "It took much longer to mentally recover."

He and Albus made eye contact again and so much was transmitted through that look that I had to turn my eyes away from the two of them. They had been through a lot together.

Scorpius gave himself a little shake. "Anyways, after that happened and after mum died, father did a lot of soul searching. I don't think he'll be joining the Order of the Phoenix anytime soon, but he's always welcome at the Potters for Christmas dinner."

I raised an eyebrow. "That's actually saying a lot."

"It does," said Albus softly.

Scorpius continued his story. "After mum died, we pretty much stopped talking to the Greengrass side of the family."

"Until recently," added Albus.

Nodding, Scorpius went on, "The last couple of years, I've been kind of undercover trying to infiltrate my side of the Greengrasses to get closer to the syndicate."

"How's that been working out?" I asked.

"Not very well," admitted Scorpius. "We're not sure which Greengrasses are involved with the syndicate, so it's been a lot of dead ends. Plus, regardless of my Greengrass background, dating a Potter doesn't make it easy to trust you."

"It must be fun to spend so much time with the Greengrasses," I deadpanned.

"I have to take a shower after every time I meet with one of them."

It was my turn to laugh darkly. "If your Greengrasses are anything like Grandma Scarlett, I don't blame you."

Albus looked horrified and actually spit out some of his hot chocolate. I gave him a very weird look. "What's wrong?"

"It's just that, that, that Scorpius's Grandma Greengrass is named Jade," he spluttered.

"Your point?" I asked, very confused. Scorpius looked like he had an inkling of what Albus's problem was and was either about to laugh or roll his eyes. I really had no idea.

"It's so tacky!" Albus was finally able to say. "They're both named after colors!"

I couldn't help it. I laughed. Very loudly. It was just so ridiculous and innocent that it made me forget why the three of us were together.

It was the first time I felt happy (let's be honest though – the first time I felt nearly happy) in what seemed like an eternity and I let the emotion wash over me and I basked in it.

I would get through this and I would survive whatever my family threw at me.

A/N: Hiya all! Thanks for making it this far. I'm having a blast writing this story. It's the first fanfiction I've written in a long time and I'm having a blast. I certainly hope you're having a blast too.

At this point, I should make a note regarding the canonicity of _Taking Down The Family_. As far as I'm aware, this story is compliant with _The Cursed Child_. I believe the major details are there (Scorpius and Albus's background, Astoria's death/Draco's change of heart, Hermione being a former Minister for Magic - though for my purposes, I imagine that she stepped aside after her first term, spouting something about the continuity of government or the peaceful transition of power to make a statement about Ministry corruption). Let me know if you spot anything major that I should be aware of!

I'd love to hear your thoughts on anything else too. Leave a review! :)


	5. Breakfast

I woke up late the next morning to the smell of eggs and bacon. And coffee. Blessed coffee. I pushed the blanket back and got to my feet. I stretched, lifting my arms up in the air and let out a yawn.

I looked down at what I was wearing – still the jeans and jumper from yesterday. I shrugged. Potter was bringing supplies later so I could change then.

Downstairs, I could hear muffled voices. The clock on the bedside table said that it was about 10:30. Figuring I should make an appearance, I put my hair up in a quick bun and ventured downstairs.

We had been joined by James who was sitting at the scrubbed table with Scorpius and Albus. He looked up when I entered the kitchen and raised an arm in greeting.

"Morning, Potter," I said and made a beeline for the coffee pot. I picked up one of the mugs sitting by it and filled it nearly to the brim.

"No room for milk or sugar," observed Albus.

"Well spotted," I said dryly. "You could be an auror."

He rolled his eyes and was about to speak, but James spoke up. "I filled them in on what you told us last night. I thought they should know what was happening."

I nodded. I had figured as much and I was in no mood to tell the story again. "That's fine."

"I'm sorry," said Scorpius. "I know how much Addison meant to you."

I gave him a quick smile, but said nothing. To be completely truthful, I was still processing how I felt about Addison. Obviously, I was distraught that she was almost definitely dead, but last night before I had gone to bed, I had realized that I had no idea who she was. I trusted her, but I did not know why. For all I knew, Addison wasn't even her real name.

James was watching me with with a look in his eyes that I couldn't quite work out. He was more intelligent than I admitted, so I wouldn't have been surprised if he had caught on to how I was feeling. I suppose it was a rather natural conundrum I was in.

To be safe though, I changed the subject. "Any word from Granger or your father?"

"No. Looks like we'll be here for a little bit longer," said Scorpius cheerfully. "Home sweet home."

"Did you at least bring us some fresh clothes?" I asked James.

To my relief, he nodded and got up. He went over to the counter and picked up a sack. He tossed it over to me and I caught it. I opened it up and was surprised to find a nice arrangement of clothes and toiletries.

He saw my surprise and grinned. "Shockingly enough, I do know how to shop for girls."

"I think Lily would beg to differ," pointed out Albus.

James rolled his eyes. "That was one time."

"For her birthday, you bought her socks," responded Albus flatly. "Even Dad knows better than that."

"That's because Dad can afford to buy his daughter nice presents!" argued James. "I had just graduated and was trying to pay rent! It was either the socks or a cheap pair of knickers."

At that, Albus wrinkled his nose. "Please don't buy our sister knickers."

"Then be glad I bought her socks," said James exasperatedly.

I glanced at Scorpius who was surveying the arguing Potters. "Do they do this often?"

He shrugged. "They're usually fine if there in a large group. It's when they're alone or around people they trust."

That made sense. I noted that this meant that the two Potters trusted me. If I had been able to convince them to trust me, perhaps Granger and the elder Potter were going to help me destroy the Hadrians.

"So, do you have any idea who or what Babineaux is?" I asked Scorpius, changing the subject.

When I asked the question, the Potters stopped arguing. I had their attention. It was the only lead I really had on Addison's disappearance and I figured Scorpius would have the best idea.

"A who," answered Scorpius. He took a sip of his coffee. "They're a French crime family."

"I've never heard of them," I said, a bit put out. I thought I was up to speed on all the important crime families.

"They're muggles," said Scorpius.

My eyebrows shot up and I almost spit out the coffee in my mouth. "Muggles?"

James and Albus also looked surprised. The latter said, "I didn't know the Hadrians dealt with muggles."

"They don't," I said. I was completely flummoxed. My thoughts were racing as I tried to figure out what my family would get out of a deal with muggles.

"Expanding the family business?" suggested James.

I could only shake my head. "I highly doubt it. We make enough money as it is… Though…"

James looked at me, clearly expecting me to say more. I shook my head. "I'm not sure. I need to think."

"Trust your gut," advised Scorpius. Damn those aurors.

"I wonder if that's what mother and father were fighting about," I said slowly. "They had been arguing about the future of the syndicate."

"Which one of them do you think would want to deal with muggles?" asked James.

I paused for a second to think. "Probably mother… But it was father who was talking to Gayelord about the success of the Babineaux deal. He sounded pleased."

My stomach suddenly let out a growl and I admit that I started a bit. I looked over at the hob where there was a pan with bacon on it. Taking the hint, Scorpius summoned a plate and piled bacon onto it. He also scooped some scrambled eggs onto the plate. He placed it in front of me and I dug in happily, nodding my thanks.

"I don't know if it's because I haven't eaten in a day, but this is the most delicious thing I've ever eaten," I said, my mouth completely full. It was almost a miracle I was able to speak with all the food in my mouth.

"Scorp is quite the housewife," said Albus fondly.

Said housewife rolled his eyes. "Just because you are unable to make even a peanut butter and jelly sandwich does not make me the housewife in the relationship."

"How do you mess up a PB&J?" I asked curiously as I took a sip of my coffee.

"All the jam just kind of piles into the middle," said James. "So the peanut butter is spread out well, but you bite into the middle and the peanut butter to jelly ratio is just completely off."

"It must be very hard to be you," I said.

Albus smiled at me, apparently glad that someone was taking his side. James and Scorpius just scowled at me, but I ignored them as I continued to happily eat my eggs and bacon. They started talking about Quidditch scores, but I quickly lost interest.

When I finished eating, I scourgified my plate and fork, before using a Banishing Charm to send it over to the drying rack. I kept my coffee mug since I was still nursing it.

They were still talking about Quidditch, so I stood up with my coffee to go to the conservatory. If I had to be stuck here, I decided that I should treat this time as a vacation. I had an inkling that this would be one of the last times I had to relax for a while. As I exited the kitchen, I snagged the copy of _The Daily Prophet_ that James must have brought with him.

I sat down in the conservatory and opened _The Daily Prophet_ to the social and gossip section. I lost myself in reading about the goings-on of all the wizarding socialites. The other three would let me know if anything happened.


	6. George Weasley's Invention

The four of us were in the conservatory having a cup of tea when there was a knock on the door. The aurors quickly had their wands out and I was pleased that I was just seconds behind them. James motioned for me to stay down and jerked his head to Albus. The two of them went into the house carefully, casting furtive looks around them.

Scorpius stayed behind with me and put one hand on my back as we crouched down. He made for the door and pulled me along with him. "We're sitting ducks here," he hissed.

I nodded and we made our way into the kitchen, still staying down. James and Albus were not there and must have already been in the foyer.

There was a knock again and I shot a glance at Scorpius. He looked grim.

Suddenly, there was a whooshing noise and the sound of the door flying open and hitting the wall.

"Drop your wand and put your hands where I can see them," barked a voice. Was that James? Or Albus?

Silence. Then the sound of footsteps. And then, "Dad…? Aunt Hermione?"

"Hello, son," said an annoyed voice. "Who else would it be?"

"We thought you might have been intruders," said Albus.

There was silence again and then the sound of someone smacking a newspaper on someone else's head.

"Ow, Dad!" exclaimed James.

"If I was an intruder, do you really think I would knock?" said Harry exasperatedly. "And how the hell would I get through the wards?"

I decided now was as good of a time as any to enter the conversation so I headed to the foyer with Scorpius following me. I wanted to see James taken down a few pegs and I suspected that Scorpius was also interested. God, we were starved for entertainment. There were only so many rounds of Exploding Snap you could play

"Constant vigilance," muttered James as Scorpius and I walked in.

I saw Harry's face soften and I was disappointed. This wouldn't be the dressing down I had anticipated.

Harry saw me and smiled. "Ms. Hadrian."

I nodded back in greeting at him and Granger who was still standing on the stoop. She had an amused smile.

"Do come in, won't you?" I said and rolled my eyes at my housemates who apparently lost their manners.

Granger laughed and pushed Harry out of the way slightly so she come in. "Thank you, Cressida."

Harry followed her in and we all headed to the kitchen. I sat down on one side of the scrubbed table and Scorpius and Albus sat on either side of me. Granger and Harry sat down across from me. James stayed standing and leaned against the counter looking thoughtful.

I summoned the mugs from the conservatory and for good measure summoned two more for our visitors. Catching on, Scorpius summoned the kettle and poured hot water before banishing it back to next to the stove.

Granger nodded approvingly and took the mug into her hands and inhaled the lemon tea. She breathed contentedly before beginning to speak. "We are going to work with you, Cressida."

I let out an "Oh!" in surprise before turning red. I hated showing emotions.

Harry's lips upturned a bit. "Didn't think it would be that simple?"

I couldn't help but shake my head.

"We used the information you gave us and set up surveillance on the O Faolains," said Hermione. "Our intelligence has increased exponentially."

"Even if you're double crossing us, you're still giving us valuable information," said Harry as he shrugged. "Besides, you'll have these three with you the entire time, so you won't have the chance to betray us."

"So you don't trust me?"

Harry gave me a look. "I didn't say that, but what would you do if you were in my shoes?"

That was fair. Besides, I had grown to like Albus and Scorpius. I even tolerated James, so I didn't mind spending more time with the three.

I nodded. "So how is this going to work?"

Granger answered. "This is going to be an off-the-record operation."

Albus snorted. "Aunt Hermione authorizing an illegal operation? I thought I'd never see the day."

Ignoring her nephew, Granger continued. "I've been reaching out to a few people from the old days. Folks who have no love for the Hadrian Crime Syndicate and people who we can trust."

"Who?" I asked curiously.

She didn't answer, but gave a look to Harry who answered for her. "It's probably best if you don't know."

He looked at each of us in turn. "And I mean all of you."

James began to protest, but Harry cut him off. "I'm serious. These aren't trained aurors who are working with us. If any of you are compromised, I'm not putting any of them in danger."

"That's fine," I said quickly. "Actually that's smart."

"If I may continue…?" asked Granger with a cool look at her nephews.

Nobody contradicted her, so she cleared her throat to speak. "They're the ones who are tailing the Hadrians and O Faolains right now. Keeping an eye on the estate and various properties too."

"Where do I come in?"

"You're going to be our mole," said Harry.

I had expected as much, but I still tensed. The last mole, as I very clearly remembered, had disappeared and was probably dead.

James gave me a look, but I ignored him. He was too good at reading me.

"Are you okay with this?" asked Granger, her eyes unreadable.

"Yes," I responded firmly. "How will this work?"

Granger looked pleased. "George will be here shortly and he'll explain."

"Uncle George?" exclaimed Albus excitedly, reminding me of a small child for a moment before he composed himself. "I mean –" He cleared his throat, "– Uncle George is coming?"

"He is," said Harry "We, ah, need his expertise."

I was very curious, but I said nothing. I would find out eventually.

Fortunately, I didn't have to wait long, because the front door opened and footsteps approached the kitchen. A tall man with shaggy red hair entered.

He grinned at all of us and sat down at an empty chair. "How's tricks?"

"Perfect timing as always," drawled Harry.

"Not unlike Ron on your 17th birthday," shot back George.

To my surprise, Harry actually reddened. A lot.

"Not now, George," said Granger shortly. "We have work to do."

George sobered up, but shot me a wink when Granger looked down at the notes she always seemed to have on her. I raised one eyebrow in response. I had no idea how the infamous prankster would help us.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a thick string. He placed it carefully on the table and we all looked at it curiously.

"What is that, George?" asked Scorpius.

I rather felt that George had been waiting for someone to ask before he started. He seemed to have a flair for the dramatics.

"This," began George proudly, "is my latest invention."

I poked it suspiciously with my wand. "What does it do?"

"It's a listening bug," he answered.

"Fantastic!" breathed Scorpius. "Like one of those balmy detective novels."

Albus nudged him in the ribs. "Don't pretend that you don't love those books."

"Shut up."

"How does it work?" asked James, talking over the quiet spat.

George picked it up and leaned over toward me. "Do you mind?"

I shook my head and motioned for him to continue.

He brushed my hair aside and inserted the string into my ear. I couldn't see what he was doing, but it felt like he rolled it up inside my earlobe almost like a rolly polly bug. He tapped it with his wand.

"I just disillusioned it so it's not apparent," he explained. He pulled something out of his pocket again and handed it to James. It looked a bit like muggle speakers.

"Now, if Ms. Hadrian and Mr. Malfoy would go into the other room and cast Muffliato," he said. We stood up and dutifully did as he said.

Before we exited, he said to us, "Tap the string with your wand and then have a conversation."

I grinned at him, knowing what would come next. We went into the sitting room and cast Muffliato in the direction of the kitchen.

We then proceeded to talk about the gossip section of _The Daily Prophet._ Tanya Billowsforth was pregnant again, but because she was in between husbands (she had gotten divorced from husband number three last year) it was causing quite the scandal.

"Should we go back in?" asked Scorpius after we finished speculating about who the father was.

I nodded and we headed back in. Everyone else was grinning at us, as I took the string out of my ear and placed it on the table. Albus spoke up. "My money's on Xavier Dillings too."

George looked triumphant. "And there you go, folks. I'll be here all night."

At that he looked down at his watch and swore. "Actually, I have to be home in 15 or Ang will be furious."

"We're almost done here for now," said Harry. He looked around at the rest of us. "Anything else from George while we have him here?"

"I have a question," I put in.

George nodded at me and I took that as an invitation to ask my question. "Won't my family be able to detect it?"

"Nope," said George. "Because the technology doesn't exist yet. You can't detect something with magic if you don't know what you're looking for."

"That's not true," interjected Granger. "There's plenty of examples. Homenum Revelio for one."

"Always the contrarian," muttered George under his breath, but Granger didn't look that mad at the insult. She just looked smug.

"So…?" I said slowly.

George looked at me and then back at Granger. He decided to look at Granger while he spoke. "If the Hadrians have any anti-surveillance spells on their property, it won't drone out the bug because it doesn't exist and can't be detected."

"If they have something like the Thieves' Waterfall?" asked Harry.

"It's inside her," said George. "That's key."

I kind of wrinkled my nose when he put it like that.

"Anyways, must be going so Ang doesn't light a fire under my arse," said George as he stood up. Nobody stopped him, so he left the table whistling and exited the house.

We sat there in silence for a few moments, examining the string on the table before Granger spoke up. "You know, that's some pretty advanced magic."

Harry gave her an amused look and Granger glared at him. "Never tell him I said that."


	7. Dinner at the Hadrian Estate

"Are you ready?" asked Harry, looking carefully at me.

"Yes."

"Are you sure?" he pressed.

"She's fine, Dad," James cut in. "She can do it."

Harry hesitated before nodding. He smiled ruefully at me. "There's a reason why James is your handler."

The three of us were standing outside Shell Cottage, going over the final details. The wind was blowing around us – it would soon be the beginning of autumn. The air was crisp and clear.

"I'll be in your ear the entire time," said James. "And if we need to contact each other?"

"I have the knut with the Protean Charm on it," I answered. "Thanks to Hermione."

"She learned it in our fifth year," said Harry proudly.

"I know," I said. "I actually paid attention in History of Magic."

Harry opened his mouth to say something, but James cut him off again. "We can talk about the genius of Aunt Hermione later. We have to make sure that Cressida gets to the estate by dinner."

I looked down at my watch which told me it was nearly 5:00. "I should get going."

James started walking to the apparition point that was beyond the wards. Harry and I followed a few steps behind.

"If something goes wrong, you get out of there right away and come here," said James when we had reached the apparition point.

I was silent for a moment and looked back at Shell Cottage which had disappeared thanks to the wards. I stared at the vast ocean and took it in. It was very peaceful and I had enjoyed the calm of the last few days.

Finally, I turned back to James and grinned at him. "But if nothing goes wrong, where's the fun in that?"

And with that, a soft pop, and the feeling of being squeezed, I disappeared from the tranquil coastal scene and appeared outside an imposing gate. I took a deep breath and placed my left palm against the keyhole. The gate creaked open and I started making my way up the gravelly path.

It was quite misty and chilly as I was walking and I shivered slightly, whether because of the ambiance or because of my nerves. The ambiance certainly didn't hurt. Sometimes I thought that Uncle Calliban had placed a curse on the estate to make everyone miserable.

There was a turn in the path and I caught my first glimpse of the mansion. Even before I realized how fucked up and awful my family was, I had thought it imposing. The exterior was made of a dark paneling that in the light looked purple, but at night looked black. Although it was only three stories high, there were a few turrets and some high gables that made the mansion look bigger.

After pausing briefly to survey the mansion, I continued briskly on the path. It was cold and I was hungry.

When I reached the house, I walked up the steps and onto the veranda. I noticed that there were some new plants along the railing and I couldn't help but smile. Mother always fancied herself a bit of a gardener and was constantly changing the plant decor. It drove our house elf mad.

I pushed the door open and entered the foyer. It was silent inside like I had suspected. Everyone must have gone straight through to dinner and not mingled for drinks like they sometimes did.

Before I made my way to the dining room, I glanced down at the elegant black dress I was wearing. Harry had brought it from his house and I wondered if it belonged to his wife. I should have asked.

I walked purposefully to the dining room door and opened it. Everyone was sitting down making light conversation, but they all looked up to see who had entered.

"Ah, Cressida!" said a fairly portly man at the end of the table. "We weren't expecting you!"

"I do apologize, Father," I said formally. "I cut my time in London short and only just got back."

"No matter," said a woman sitting to his right. She was tall and pale with shoulder length black hair that was perfectly straight. "There's an empty setting next to Deirdre. Calliban was called away on urgent business."

I inclined my head toward my mother respectfully and sat down next to another pale woman. Her hair was a bit longer and more unkempt than my mother, but the family resemblance was clear. Both Aunt Deirdre and my mother had the same perfect skin and dark eyes. Their irises were such a dark brown that they were almost black. I was always thankful that I had inherited my father's blue eyes.

As the light conversation picked up again, Aunt Deidre began talking to me with her soft Irish lilt. Having grown up in London, she did not have the strong Irish accent that my grandparents had. If that side of the family didn't have such a love for Irish literature and mythology, you probably couldn't have guessed that she and mother were Irish because of their appearance and accents. Mother's accent was even less pronounced, though I always thought she purposefully masked it.

"Did you enjoy London?" she was asking me.

"I did," I answered. "It was nice being at the penthouse alone for a bit. I haven't really had a holiday since I graduated."

That was the story we had decided upon to explain my disappearance. The family owned a penthouse in muggle London and Harry had put some of his people on surveillance to see if anyone had been using it. It wasn't connected to the floo network and there were apparition wards so one would have to enter the building from the exterior. Surveillance plus the questionable acquisition of a muggle security camera feed told us that the penthouse had been empty. Besides me, of course.

"After I graduated, I did a tour of the continent," said Deirdre. "It's a shame you never went on a trip the summer after you graduated."

I shrugged as I poured myself a glass of wine. "What's in the past is in the past."

She nodded in what I assumed was supposed to be a wise manner and turned her attention to her other side where her son Aquila was sitting. I had always liked Aquila. We had been the same year at Hogwarts and since he was involved with the more legitimate businesses of the family, he always gave off more normal vibes.

He turned to face his mother as she began to speak to him. Deirdre was nagging him about something or other and he winked at me when he saw me looking over at them.

I grinned into my wine glass and looked around the table. Mother and father were ignoring each other per usual. Orlagh and Aodhan, Deirdre's other two children, were down by my parents and they were fast in conversation. Orlagh wasn't that bad and neither was Aodhan, but they had always been a bit more gung ho about the syndicate than Aqulia and I were. It had always been the two of us and the two of them. I had another two cousins on the Hadrian side of the family, but they lived in Turkey where the family was trying to make some inroads since Uncle Mordred had married Aunt Yasmine, the eldest daughter of a wealthy and prominent family.

Gayelord was at the other head of the table. He was silent and his eyes unreadable, though when he saw me looking at him, his face broke into a wide smile.

I smiled back and raised my glass to him in a silent toast. He nodded and went back to surveying the rest of the table.

On my other side, Grandmother Scarlett was deep in conversation with Grandmother Aoife. What they had to talk about was beyond me. They were both miserable old crones.

Across from us, Grandfather Adonijah and Grandfather Naohman were also in deep conversation. Since Adonijah had given up the reigns of the syndicate to my father, he and my mother's father had formed a deep connection. They had always been friendly – having arranged the marriage of my parents to solidify their alliance, but lately they were rarely seen outside of each other's company. I couldn't be sure what had brought them together recently. Maybe old, evil men just gravitated toward each other.

I was pulled out of my musings by the serving of our first course. Several of our house elves approached the table holding up trays of soup. One of them, Tabby, came between Deirdre and myself.

"What kind of soup today?" I asked.

"Chestnut bisque, Missus," squeaked Tabby.

I nodded appreciatively as Tabby carefully took one of the bowls and placed it in front of me. Once everyone had been served, I eagerly dug in. I had been craving good food after subsiding on eggs and sandwiches for the last few days. Plus, house-elf cooking was much better than the cooking of three clueless aurors and one depressed soon-to-be family pariah.

The rest of dinner went by fairly quickly. I made small talk with those sitting around me, but nothing really interesting happened. It would have been disappointing, but I had figured as much. It's not like I would be undercover for five minutes before the family spilled every dark secret.

After the house-elves cleared desert – a delicious coffee crème brûlée – from the table, the conversation turned to the Wizengamot. Both Gayelord and Adonijah sat on the council where they could easily sway wizarding law and, of course, deflect investigation into the family.

"There's going to be a vote next week on international trade tariffs," said Adonijah. "It's a perfect opportunity for us to continue to make strides in France."

I perked up, but tried not to convey my strong interest to the rest of the family. Would I hear more about the Babineaux Deal?

Father nodded. "If the tariffs decrease, our profits will double from the Babineaux deal."

I felt a burning on my left thigh. For a moment, I was confused, but remembered the knut in my pocket. James. He was sending me a message. The burning subsided and I tried to quell my curiosity. I couldn't whip out the knut at the table and I didn't want to excuse myself and miss something important.

"Is everything set for the vote?" asked Naohman in his raspy Irish brogue.

Gayelord snickered slightly from where he was sitting. "What do you think?"

The rest of the family joined in with the laughter and I added in a chuckle. I smiled for good measure too.

Once the laughter subsided, Father stood up. "Let's go through to the parlor."

He made his way to the door and we all followed him. When we were in the corridor though, I made my excuses, saying I was tired from all the walking and apparating I had done while on my holiday. They bought it and I walked up the stairs to my bedroom.

I entered and let out a content sigh. My bedroom was one of the few places I felt comfortable. My dormitory in Hogwarts had been one of those places. In the couple of months before she had disappeared so had Addison's flat.

The room was decorated with lilac wallpaper and some landscape paintings adorned the walls. I had a desk underneath one window and I unconsciously walked toward it after shutting the door behind me. I flicked my wand at the door to lock it as I walked to the desk.

I tapped my wand to one of the drawers and it opened. I pulled out a tin box and layed down on my plush four-poster bed atop the duvet. I repositioned the pillows behind me and opened the box.

Inside there was a stack of photographs. The one on top was of Addison and I from our fifth-year. She looked so young. There were no lines under her eyes. She hadn't looked old necessarily when I last saw her, but she had looked weary and almost haunted.

I quickly closed the tin box, pushing those thoughts away. Instead, I reached into my pocket and pulled out the knut. I tapped my wand to it and it glowed for a moment before words appeared. "Find out more about Wizengamot. That will be our angle."

"Got your message, Seven," I said aloud with a faint smile. Seven had been his Quidditch number at Hogwarts and he had chosen it as his code name. Mine was Shakespeare which I had not found very original, but Albus had insisted, thinking it was the funniest thing ever. He was a weird one.

I stood up from my bed and went to the attached bathroom to brush my teeth and put on pajamas. I absentmindedly thought about James's message as I went about my pre-bedtime routine. It made a lot of sense. If we could prove that the Hadrians were bribing and threatening people on the Wizengamot, we could possibly force out Gayelord and Adonijah. With them off the council, Harry and Hermione could go through the proper channels and investigate the family.

I came back into my room and flicked my wand at the lights to turn them off. I felt my way to the bed and pulled the duvet back to lay down. After covering myself back up, I rolled over to my side and closed me eyes.

As I fell asleep, I thought of Addison and the way she had looked when were reunited. What had she been through since Hogwarts?


End file.
